System And Method For Controlling Home Network Devices Using Multicast Enabled Remote Controls

ABSTRACT

A system, method, and article of manufacture for controlling home network devices using a multicast enabled remote control. The system includes a plurality of home network devices capable of receiving and/or transmitting multicast input and/or output signals and a home gateway to receive audio/video signals generated outside of the home and to transform the audio/video signals into multicast output signals. The system also includes a multicast enabled remote control to detect, aggregate, store and display all audio/video multicast output signals on the multicast enabled remote control, to enable a user to redirect an audio/video multicast output signal to one or more of the plurality of home network devices capable of receiving multicast input signals, and to control the plurality of home network devices capable of receiving and/or transmitting multicast input and/or output signals.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present application is a continuation application of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 12/650,638, entitled “SYSTEM AND METHOD FORCONTROLLING HOME NETWORK DEVICES USING MULTICAST ENABLED REMOTECONTROLS,” which was filed on Dec. 31, 2009 and which is continuationapplication of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/298,046, entitled“SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR CONTROLLING HOME NETWORK DEVICES USING MULTICASTENABLED REMOTE CONTROLS,” which was filed on Dec. 8, 2005.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Field of the Invention

The present invention is generally related to digital home networking.More particularly, the present invention is related to a system andmethod for controlling home network devices using a multicast enabledremote control.

DESCRIPTION

The evolution of digital technological advances over the last decade orso is transforming the average house into a digital home. For example,homes now include digital equipment that enable users of the home towatch television and surf the Internet at the same time on the samedigital device, to view their digital photographs on the television oron the computer, to network personal computers within the home to enablethe sharing of documents, images and other types of media amongst thenetworked PCs, etc.

Each digital device usually comes with its own remote control. A problemassociated with having so many different digital devices in the home ishaving to keep track of each of the remote controls. The ability tocontrol all of the different digital devices in the home is often timesdifficult for the average consumer. Connecting all of the digitaldevices in the home may also pose a problem for the average consumer.Also, having to re-wire/re-connect a digital device when the digitaldevice is to be used in a different location of the home may be aninconvenience. For example, if one wants to view a digital video disc(DVD) in the family room when the only DVD player is connected to thetelevision in the living room, the DVD player must be disconnected fromthe television in the living room and re-connected to a television inthe family room. Also, if one wants to view vacation or special familyevent camcorder movies, the camcorder has to be connected to atelevision or some other type of display in a room of the house. If theperson is showing the camcorder movie(s) to guests, the camcorder mayhave to be connected to the television in the living room or the familyroom. If the person is viewing the camcorder movie(s) alone or withanother family member, the person may want to view the camcordermovie(s) in the comfort of his/her bedroom, and therefore, must connectthe camcorder to the television in his/her bedroom. Also, if the personwants to download the camcorder movies to his/her computer, thecamcorder has to be connected to the computer. Thus, the connection andre-connection of the camcorder to different display devices depending onits use within the home can be burdensome to any consumer.

Thus, what is needed is a system and method for enabling the consumer touse multiple digital devices within the home without putting an undueburden on the user to fully understand the intricate workings of each ofthe digital devices. What is also needed is a system and method forenabling the consumer to use any digital device anywhere within the homewithout having to re-wire the device when the device is used in adifferent location of the home.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated herein and form partof the specification, illustrate embodiments of the present inventionand, together with the description, further serve to explain theprinciples of the invention and to enable a person skilled in thepertinent art(s) to make and use the invention. In the drawings, likereference numbers generally indicate identical, functionally similar,and/or structurally similar elements. The drawing in which an elementfirst appears is indicated by the leftmost digit(s) in the correspondingreference number.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary system 100 of adigital home network having a multicast enabled remote control accordingto an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating examples of three different types ofdigital home devices according to an embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 3 illustrates audio/video signals utilized by a digital homenetwork according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 illustrates exemplary digital devices that are controlled by amulticast enabled remote control according to an embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 5A illustrates an exemplary multicast enabled remote controlaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5B illustrates an exemplary display of a multicast enabled remotecontrol where the multicast enabled remote control is in a port positionthat enables control of all multicast devices in the home.

FIG. 6 is a flow diagram describing an exemplary method for controllinga home network using a multicast enabled remote control according to anembodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

While the present invention is described herein with reference toillustrative embodiments for particular applications, it should beunderstood that the invention is not limited thereto. Those skilled inthe relevant art(s) with access to the teachings provided herein willrecognize additional modifications, applications, and embodiments withinthe scope thereof and additional fields in which embodiments of thepresent invention would be of significant utility.

Reference in the specification to “one embodiment”, “an embodiment” or“another embodiment” of the present invention means that a particularfeature, structure or characteristic described in connection with theembodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the presentinvention. Thus, the appearance of the phrases “in one embodiment” or“in an embodiment” appearing in various places throughout thespecification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment.

Embodiments of the present invention are directed to a system and methodfor controlling home network devices. Embodiments of the presentinvention provide a very easy and cost effective way to control anentire range of digital home devices (audio/video devices as well asnon-audio/video devices) using a single multicast enabled remotecontrol. The home network transmits multicast signals using localmulticast assigned addresses for each multicast channel in the network.All network devices are given a friendly name and a fixed localmulticast address during device setup time. The multicast enabled remotecontrol allows the home user to detect available audio/video multicaststreams and redirect an input network device to receive a selectedmulticast stream. The multicast enabled remote control also allows thehome user to control the full range of home network devices.

Embodiments of the present invention reduce the complexity ofcontrolling all of the home network devices and eliminate therequirement of having multiple remote control devices to controlseparate devices in the home. Multicasting all of the digital networkdevices using a single remote control enable audio and/or video outputdevices to be played in any room within the home that has a digitalnetwork input device, regardless of the location of the audio and/oraudio/video output device. The multicast enabled remote control detectsavailable I/O (input/output) devices and multicast audio/video streams.A user, via the multicast enabled remote control, may select a multicastaddress/channel and redirect the multicast address/channel to be playedon a network input device by selecting the desired input device. Forexample, live video from an entrance way surveillance camera can beredirected to an LCD (liquid crystal display) display in the kitchen ifa user is located in the kitchen and wants to view any activity at theentrance way of the home. Digital photos stored on a computer may alsobe redirected to the LCD in the kitchen for viewing by a user located inthe kitchen. In yet another example, a movie being played on asubscriber cable channel may be redirected to the LCD in the kitchen forviewing by the user located in the kitchen. Thus, the LCD display may beconverted into a video monitor, a digital photo frame, or a televisiondepending upon what type of audio/video transmission is desired forviewing by the user. Users of the system in other locations of the homehaving a display may also view any of the above items simultaneously orat different times. A user of the system may control any of the networkdevices (e.g., surveillance camera, computer, cable television channel,and LCD) via the multicast enabled remote control as well.

Although embodiments of the present invention are described as havingcertain digital network I/O devices in a digital home, the invention isnot limited to the digital network I/O devices described. One skilled inthe relevant art(s) would know that more, less, or other digital networkI/O devices may be used in a digital home network without departing fromthe scope of the invention.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary system 100 of adigital home network having a multicast enabled remote control accordingto an embodiment of the present invention. Although system 100 shows afinite number of digital network devices, more digital network devices,less digital network devices, or other digital network devices may beemployed in a digital home network using the single multicast enabledremote control.

As shown in FIG. 1, system 100 includes a plurality of audio/videodigital devices and non-audio/video digital devices interspersedthroughout a home, as well as outside the home. Rooms within a home mayinclude, but are not limited to, a living room 110, a dining room 130, akitchen 140, a master bedroom 150, a child's bedroom 160, a home office170, a utility room 180, and at least one bathroom 190.

Living room 110 may comprise audio/video digital devices such as, butnot limited to, an entertainment center having a television 112, a CD(compact disc) player 114, a combination DVD/VCR (digital videodisc/video cassette recorder) player and/or digital video recorder 116,and a surround sound audio system 118. Living room 110 may also includea headphone 120 to enable a user to receive telephone calls, music,intercom communications, or other audio multicast signals from thenetwork. Non-audio/video digital devices may include, but are notlimited to, light fixtures 113 to light living room 110 and a ceilingfan 115 to cool living room 110.

Dining room 130 may include, but is not limited to, a headphone 132 toenable a user to receive telephone calls, music, intercomcommunications, or other audio multicast signals from the network and aspeaker system 134 to enable audio signals to be piped in for all tolisten. Dining room 130 may comprise non-audio/video digital devices,such as, but not limited to, and light fixtures 131 to light dining room130.

Kitchen 140 may include audio/video digital network devices such as, butnot limited to, a notebook PC 142, an LCD display 144, a headphone 146,and speakers 148. Non-audio/video network devices may include, but arenot limited to, a conventional oven 141, a microwave oven 143, adishwasher 145, a refrigerator 147, and a combination light fixture andfan 149.

Master bedroom 150 may comprise audio/video digital network devices suchas, but not limited to, a television 152, a speaker system 154, acombination DVD/VCR player 156, a notebook personal computer (PC) 158,and a headphone 155. Non-audio/video network devices found in masterbedroom 150 may include, but are not limited to, a combination lightfixture and fan 151 and night table lamps 153.

Child's bedroom 160 may comprise audio/video digital network devicessuch as, but not limited to, a video camera 162 for viewing childactivity, a desktop PC with a wireless network card 164, a speakersystem 166, and a LCD (liquid crystal display) 168. Non-audio/videodigital network devices may include, but are not limited to, acombination light fixture and fan 161 and night light fixtures 163.

A home office 170 may include audio/video digital network devices suchas, but not limited to, a notebook or desktop PC 172 with a wirelessrouter 174, a personal digital assistant (PDA) 176, a headphone 177, andan MP3 (MPEG (Moving Picture Experts Group)-1 Audio Layer-3) player 178.Headphone 177 may receive calls for an office telephone number or hometelephone number. Non-audio/video digital network devices in home office170 may include, but are not limited to, a combination ceiling lightfixture and fan 171, a desk light fixture 173, and a printer/fax/scanner175.

Utility room 180 may include audio/video network devices such as, butnot limited to, an LCD 182, a speaker system 184, and a headphone 186.Non-audio/video digital network devices may include, but are not limitedto, a light fixture 181, a washer 183, a dryer 185, a hot water heater187, and a heating/cooling system 189.

Bathroom 190 may include audio/video digital network devices, such as,but not limited to, a headset 192 and a speaker 194. Non audio/videodigital network devices may include, but are not limited to, lightfixtures 191.

In one or more entrance ways to the home, system 100 may also includesecurity surveillance cameras 196/198 for viewing activity occurring ateach entrance into the home. Although not explicitly shown in FIG. 1,the entrance hallway may also include one or more non audio/videodigital devices such as, for example, one or more light fixtures and aspeaker system.

Just inside the home, for example, in an entrance hallway, system 100may include a home gateway 193 for accepting all electrical signalsgenerated by outside sources, such as, for example, service providers.Such signals may include, but are not limited to, telephone signals,television signals, digital cable signals, satellite cable signals, etc.Home gateway 193 accepts the incoming signals and separates the signalsinto local multicast addresses/channels. For example, each cable orsatellite channel will be provided a multicast address/channel. Homegateway 193 may also be capable of sending audio/video signals viatelephone communications as well.

One or more multicast enabled remote control devices 195 are alsoincluded in system 100. In one embodiment, each room (110, 130, 140,150, 160, 170, 180, and 190) of the house may include multicast enabledremote control 195 dedicated for use in that particular room. In anotherembodiment, only the major rooms in the house include multicast enabledremote control 195. In yet another embodiment, system 100 may includeone multicast enabled remote control device 195 for each person livingin the home, excluding small children and infants.

The digital home devices shown in FIG. 1 may be connected via a wirelessnetwork using such techniques as WiFi (Wireless Fidelity), WiMAX(Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access), Bluetooth, or anyother wireless technique (presently known or to be developed in thefuture) that enables the digital home devices within the home tofunctionally operate without wires. WiFi, WiMAX, and Bluetooth are wellknown wireless techniques to those skilled in the relevant art(s).

Embodiments of the present invention separate the digital home devicesinto three (3) types. The first type comprises home devices that are nonaudio/video devices. The second type comprises audio and/or video outputdevices that are capable of multicasting the audio and/or video on localmulticast addresses. The third type of digital home devices includeaudio and/or video input devices that are capable of playing the audioand/or video streams that are generated by the devices of the secondtype, that is, audio and/or video output devices.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating examples of the three types of digitalhome devices according to an embodiment of the present invention. Asshown in FIG. 2, Type I digital network devices are non audio/videodevices. These devices include the normal home appliances, such as, butnot limited to, ovens 202 such as microwave, gas, electric, orconvection ovens; refrigerators 204; lights 206; fans 208, hot waterheaters 210, heating and cooling systems 212, washer/dryer 214,dishwasher 216, etc. In one embodiment, the lights of a home may bebroken into zones and controlled according to zones. In alternativeembodiments, the lights of a home may be controlled according to roomsor groups of rooms. In embodiments of the present invention, multicastenabled remote control 195 will be used to control the digital networkdevices of Type I.

As indicated above, Type II digital network devices comprise audioand/or video digital network output devices that are capable ofmulticasting the audio and/or video output on a local multicast address.The exemplary digital network output devices shown in FIG. 2 include,but are not limited to, digital cameras 218 for providing video or videoand audio, such as, but not limited to, a surveillance camera system, acamcorder, and a digital camera; audio devices 220, such as a compactdisc (CD) player, an MP3 player, a digital cassette player, a digitalradio, a microphone, and other types of digital devices that provideaudio for one's listening enjoyment; and audio/video digital devices222, such as, for example, a digital video disc (DVD) player, a digitalvideo recorder (DVR), a camcorder, a personal computer, a personaldigital assistant, and other types of digital network devices thatenable audio and/or video output multicasting on a multicast address.

As previously stated, Type III digital network devices include audioand/or video digital network input devices that are capable of playingthe streams of audio and/or video streams generated by the digitalnetwork devices of Type II. Such devices, may include, but are notlimited to, speakers 224, displays 226, televisions 228, and any othertype of audio and/or video devices that enable the rendering of audioand/or video streams generated by the devices of Type II for one'sviewing and/or listening pleasure.

In embodiments of the present invention, all network connected devicesare multicast capable. They may be capable of receiving multicaststreams (e.g., LCD displays, televisions, refrigerators, microwaves,etc.) and/or sending multicast streams (e.g., DVD player, computer,etc.) in a local multicast network environment. During setup of adigital network device, an administrator/home owner assigns the device auser friendly name and a fixed local multicast address to detect andcontrol the device. For example, a DVD player in the living room and aDVD player in the master bedroom may be given the user friendly names of“Living Room DVD” and “Master Bedroom DVD” and the multicast addressesof “230.0.0.11” and “230.0.0.15”, respectively. All audio/video and nonaudio/video devices record their presence to multicast enabled remotecontrol 195 by multicasting their identity on their assigned address.The audio/video home network devices broadcast their presence using thefixed multicast address assigned during setup.

As previously indicated, signals for the digital home network may bereceived from an outside source, such as, for example, a serviceprovider, or within the home from either audio/video digital homedevices or non-audio/video digital home devices. FIG. 3 illustrates theaudio/video signals utilized by the digital home network according to anembodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 shows audio/video signalstransmitted into the home from outside sources (Group A signals),audio/video signals transmitted within the home via the audio/videodigital multicast devices within the home (Group B signals), andmulticast enabled remote control 195.

Group A signals are audio/video signals that are transmitted into thehome from outside sources. Group A signals may include, but are notlimited to, telephone signals 302, television signals 304 (includinghigh definition television (HDTV), cable television signals, satellitetelevision signals), and digital radio signals 306. Signals that arereceived from outside sources are captured by home gateway 193. Homegateway 193 accepts incoming signals and places them on a localmulticast address/channel. For example, a local multicast address may beassigned to each cable or satellite channel, telephone number, and radiostation being received by home gateway 193.

Group B signals are audio/video multicast signals that are generated bythe digital multicast devices within the home. Group B signals may begenerated from digital camcorders, digital surveillance cameras, digitalvideo disc (DVD) players, entertainment centers, compact disc players,MP3 players, or any other digital device that generates audio/videomulticast signals. As previously indicated, each device that generates agroup B signal is provided a multicast address and a name upon setup ofthe device.

The audio/video multicast signals from home gateway 193 (Group A) andfrom each digital device in the home capable of generating multicastaudio/video signals (Group B) are detected by multicast enabled remotecontrol 195. Multicast enabled remote control 195 may distribute themulticast transmissions on a home input device upon the request of auser. Such home input devices include displays (such as plasma displays,LCD displays, etc.), televisions, stereo speakers, loudspeakers,intercoms, headphones, and any other network input device that acceptsaudio and/or video multicast streams.

Digital devices within the home may also be controlled by multicastenabled remote control 195. FIG. 4 illustrates exemplary digital devicesthat are controlled by multicast enabled remote control 195 according toan embodiment of the present invention. Although FIG. 4 illustratesspecific digital devices, the invention is not limited to the digitaldevices illustrated. One skilled in the relevant art(s) would know thatother digital devices capable of receiving multicast signals may also beused. The devices shown in FIG. 4 comprise household lighting devices410, home appliances 420, and audio/video devices 430 that may becontrolled by multicast enabled remote control 195. Household lightingdevices 410 include light fixtures such as, but not limited to, ceilinglights, wall lights, and lamps. Home appliances 420 include ovens, suchas, but not limited to, conventional ovens, microwave ovens, convectionovens, etc., dishwashers, refrigerators, washers, dryers, heating andcooling systems, hot water heaters, etc. Audio/video devices 430 includeDVD/VCR players, CD players, MP3 players, speaker systems, headphones,cameras, camcorders, displays, televisions, etc.

FIG. 5A illustrates an exemplary multicast enabled remote control 195according to an embodiment of the present invention. Although notexplicitly shown, remote control 195 includes a plurality of ports. Forexample, the distribution of audio/video multicast streams operates onone port, such as, for example, port 0, and the control of digitalmulticast devices in the home operates on another port, such as, forexample, port 1. Multicast enabled remote control 195 includes a display502 and a plurality of keys 508 for distributing audio/video throughoutthe home and controlling the multicast devices within the home. Display502, as illustrated in FIG. 5A, shows the operation of multicast enabledremote control 195 in the redirection mode (port 0 position). Display502 shows a data list 504 and an input network device list 506. In oneembodiment, data list 504 provides a list of multicast addresses foraudio/video streams from digital network output devices in an orderednumber fashion that may be distributed throughout the home. Device list506 provides a list of the possible multicast input devices in analphabet sequence in which the audio/video multicast streams from datalist 504 may be rendered on throughout the home. In other embodiments ofthe invention, other ordering schemes may be used to identify items onthe data list and device list. For example, items on the data list maybe identified by letters and items on the device list may be identifiedby numbers.

To distribute audio/video throughout the home, a user must select anitem from data list 504 and at least one item from input device list506. For example, to monitor the entrance way surveillance camera onmulticast stream no. 2 (multicast address 230.0.0.2) using thekitchen-LCD, a user must select multicast stream no. 2 from data list504 and multicast device h from device list 506. To verbally communicatewith a person at the entrance way, the user must redirect the microphone(from the surveillance camera) on multicast stream no. 12 (multicastaddress 230.0.0.12) from data list 504 to the kitchen speaker on deviceb from input device list 506. To watch a movie being played on themaster bedroom DVD in the living room, the user must select multicaststream no. 5 (multicast address 230.0.0.5) from data list 504 andmulticast device d (Living Room television) from input device list 506.

Embodiments of the present invention do not limit the listening and/orviewing of an audio/video stream to one network input device. In fact,multiple network input devices may play the same audio/video streamsimultaneously. For example, a movie being played on the living DVDplayer may be viewed on one or more of the television in the livingroom, the television in the master bedroom, the LCD in the children'sroom, the LCD in the kitchen, and/or the LCD in the utility room.

In embodiments of the present invention, telephone signals may berendered on speaker systems as well as headphones throughout the home.In one embodiment, telephone signals may always be connected to at leastone headphone in the home or to one or more headphones in the home sothat telephone calls may be picked up immediately without having to beredirected to a specific headphone each time a telephone call isreceived. Telephone signals are also sent to an outside source via homegateway 193. In some embodiments, telephone signals may also includevideo signals that may be displayed on any television or LCD throughoutthe home. In an embodiment in which home gateway 193 may also send videosignals, video signals may also be sent to an outside party using acamera (not shown) attached to a headphone or any other camera withinthe home if the user so desires by selecting the camera and home gateway193 on multicast enabled remote control 195.

As previously indicated, a separate port, such as, for example, port 1,may be used to send control signals to all of the network devices in thehome. In one embodiment, typical controls of a device may be capable ofbeing controlled using multicast enabled remote control 195. In anotherembodiment, a device manufacturer may turn on the most commonly usedcontrol functions for direct control using multicast enabled remotecontrol 195. An example of how a device may be controlled usingmulticast enabled remote control 195 is shown in FIG. 5B. Display 502provides a list 540 of all of the network devices. In one embodiment,upon selection of a network device, a list of parameters will appear forcontrolling a selected device. For example, as shown in FIG. 5B, when“LCD-Kitchen” is selected, the following control parameters may appear:Power, Mute, Volume, Contrast, Brightness, Sharpness, Color, and Tint.The up and down arrows on multicast enabled remote control 195 may beused to select the control that needs to be changed. Once the controlhas been selected, then the forward and backward arrows on multicastenabled remote control 195 may be maneuvered to set the control. When anenter button is selected, the multicast control signal is sent to thedevice on the control port, such as, for example, port 1, and thecorresponding control is adjusted for the selected network device.

Network devices may also be programmed to operate based on timeintervals. For example, all lights in a particular zone of the home maybe programmed to turn off at midnight each day. In another example, theheating and cooling system may be automatically set to a coolertemperature during the evening/nighttime hours versus the daytime hours.

A variety of scenarios may be utilized to program devices within thehome. For example, a parent may prevent various audio/video streams frombeing played in the children's room by blocking the input devices in thechildren's room. Blocking prevents the input devices designated as beingblocked from listening to particular multicast addresses. One skilled inthe relevant art(s) would know that multicast enabled remote control 195is capable of performing other standard remote control functions aswell.

FIG. 6 is a flow diagram 600 describing an exemplary method forcontrolling a home network using a multicast enabled remote controlaccording to an embodiment of the present invention. The invention isnot limited to the embodiment described herein with respect to flowdiagram 600. Rather, it will be apparent to persons skilled in therelevant art(s) after reading the teachings provided herein that otherfunctional flow diagrams are within the scope of the invention. Theprocess begins with block 602, where the process immediately proceeds toblock 604.

In block 604, multicast enabled remote control 195 detects andaggregates all of the multicast network transmissions from the networkdevices and the home gateway in the home network. As previouslyindicated, each home network device is given a user friendly name andassigned a fixed multicast address at set up. The user friendly name maybe related to the type of device as well as the device location withinthe home. For example, a camcorder in the child's bedroom may be giventhe name Child's Room CAM. Each home network device may record itspresence by multicasting its identity on the fixed multicast address.The process then proceeds to block 606.

In block 606, multicast enabled remote control 195 stores the multicastnetwork transmissions in a local storage and displays them on display502. For example, if multicast enabled remote control 195 is set forredirect mode (port 0), display 502 will show data list 504 and inputdevice list 506 (see FIG. 5A). If multicast enabled remote control 195is set for control mode (port 1), display 502 will show a list of all ofthe digital network devices in the home capable of being controlled bymulticast enabled remote control 195 (see FIG. 5B). The process thenproceeds to decision block 608.

In decision block 608, it is determined whether a user of multicastenabled remote control 195 wants to redirect a multicast audio and/orvideo stream to an input device or control a digital network devicewithin the home. If the user wishes to redirect audio/video streams, theprocess proceeds to decision block 610.

In decision block 610, it is determined whether multicast enabled remotecontrol 195 is set for control mode. If multicast enabled remote control195 is set for control mode, the process proceeds to block 612, wherethe mode is changed to the redirect mode. The process then proceeds toblock 614.

Returning to decision block 610, if multicast enabled remote control 195is set for redirect mode, the process then proceeds to block 614.

In block 614, an audio and/or video multicast stream from data list 504and an input device from device list 506 is entered. Upon entering theuser's selections, the selected input device is redirected to listen tothe selected multicast address stream in block 616.

Returning to decision block 608, if it is determined that the user wantsto control a device, the process proceeds to decision block 618. Indecision block 618, it is determined whether multicast enabled remotecontrol 195 is set for redirect mode. If multicast enabled remotecontrol 195 is set for redirect mode, the process proceeds to block 620,where the mode is changed to the redirect mode. The process thenproceeds to block 622.

Returning to decision block 618, if it is determined that multicastenabled remote control 195 is not set for redirect mode, the processthen proceeds to block 622.

In block 622, parameter changes for controlling a network device areentered by the user into multicast enabled remote control 195. The userselects the device and the parameters that the user wishes to controland enters the changes as described above. In one embodiment, the usermay adjust multiple controls of the device by selecting the parametersand entering the adjustment. In one embodiment, after the user hasentered the adjustments/changes, the user may press the Enter button onmulticast enabled remote control 195 to enable the changes to takeaffect. The process then proceeds to block 624.

In block 624, multicast enabled remote control 195 sends the controladjustments to the selected device, wherein the device is adjustedaccording to the control levels selected by the user.

Certain aspects of embodiments of the present invention may beimplemented using hardware, software, or a combination thereof and maybe implemented as a multicast enabled remote control in one or morecomputer systems or other processing systems. In fact, in oneembodiment, the methods may be implemented in programs executing onprogrammable machines such as mobile or stationary computers, personaldigital assistants (PDAs), set top boxes, cellular telephones andpagers, and other electronic devices that each include a processor, astorage medium readable by the processor (including volatile andnon-volatile memory and/or storage elements), at least one input device,and one or more output devices. Program code is applied to the dataentered using the input device to perform the functions described and togenerate output information. The output information may be applied toone or more output devices for controlling, for example, the digitalnetwork home devices described above or for redirecting multicastaudio/video streams to selected digital network home input devices asdescribed above. One of ordinary skill in the art may appreciate thatembodiments of the invention may be practiced with various computersystem configurations, including multiprocessor systems, minicomputers,mainframe computers, and the like. Embodiments of the present inventionmay also be practiced in distributed computing environments where tasksmay be performed by remote processing devices that are linked through acommunications network.

Each program may be implemented in a high level procedural or objectoriented programming language to communicate with a processing system.However, programs may be implemented in assembly or machine language, ifdesired. In any case, the language may be compiled or interpreted.

Program instructions may be used to cause a general-purpose orspecial-purpose processing system that is programmed with theinstructions to perform the methods described herein. Alternatively, themethods may be performed by specific hardware components that containhardwired logic for performing the methods, or by any combination ofprogrammed computer components and custom hardware components. Themethods described herein may be provided as a computer program productthat may include a machine readable medium having stored thereoninstructions that may be used to program a processing system or otherelectronic device to perform the methods. The term “machine readablemedium” or “machine accessible medium” used herein shall include anymedium that is capable of storing or encoding a sequence of instructionsfor execution by the machine and that causes the machine to perform anyone of the methods described herein. The terms “machine readable medium”and “machine accessible medium” shall accordingly include, but not belimited to, solid-state memories, optical and magnetic disks, and acarrier wave that encodes a data signal. Furthermore, it is common inthe art to speak of software, in one form or another (e.g., program,procedure, process, application, module, logic, and so on) as taking anaction or causing a result. Such expressions are merely a shorthand wayof stating the execution of the software by a processing system to causethe processor to perform an action or produce a result.

While various embodiments of the present invention have been describedabove, it should be understood that they have been presented by way ofexample only, and not limitation. It will be understood by those skilledin the art that various changes in form and details may be made thereinwithout departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as definedin the appended claims. Thus, the breadth and scope of the presentinvention should not be limited by any of the above-described exemplaryembodiments, but should be defined in accordance with the followingclaims and their equivalents.

1-18. (canceled)
 19. A household-related apparatus capable of beingused, at least in part, in at least one household in association, atleast in part, with control of household devices, the apparatus beingcapable, when the apparatus is in operation, of communicating, at leastin part, with at least one service provider and at least one cellulartelephone device, the household devices being capable of comprisinghousehold audio and/or video (audio/video) devices and at least onehousehold appliance, the at least one household appliance and thehousehold audio/video devices being capable of being comprised, at leastin part, in the at least one household, the household-related apparatuscomprising: a processor; storage capable of storing, at least in part,instructions that are capable of being executed, at least in part, bythe processor; the instructions when executed, at least in part, by theprocessor resulting in the household-related apparatus being capable ofperforming operations comprising: receiving, at least in part, at leastone audio-related stream and/or at least one video-related stream fromat least one of the household audio/video devices; transmitting, atleast in part, the at least one audio-related stream and/or at least onevideo-related stream for receipt, at least in part, by at least onerecipient device that is capable of being external to the at least onehousehold, the at least one recipient device being capable of beingselected, at least in part, for the receipt, at least in part, of the atleast one audio-related stream and/or at least one video-related streambased at least in part upon at least one user request to be received, atleast in part, via the at least one cellular telephone device;receiving, at least in part, certain data, the certain data beingcapable of being for receipt, at least in part, by at least one other ofthe household audio/video devices; transmitting, at least in part, thecertain data for use, at least in part, by the at least one other of thehousehold audio/video devices; wherein: the at least one serviceprovider comprises at least one telephone service provider; the at leastone cellular telephone device is capable, when the at least one cellulartelephone device is in operation, of receiving, at least in part, atleast one additional user request associated, at least in part, withremote control, at least in part, of the at least one householdappliance; the at least one household appliance is capable ofcomprising: at least one household lighting-related device; at least onehousehold security-related device; and/or at least one householdheating/cooling-related device; the at least one of the householdaudio/video devices is capable of being associated, at least in part,with at least one camera; the at least one audio-related stream and/orthe at least one video-related stream are to be transmitted, at least inpart, via the at least one service provider, for the receipt, at leastin part, by the at least one recipient device; the certain data are tobe received, at least in part, by the at least one other of thehousehold audio/video devices, via the at least one service provider.20. The household-related apparatus of claim 19, wherein: the at leastone household appliance comprises a plurality of household appliances;and the cellular telephone device is capable, at least in part, ofremotely controlling, at least in part, when the cellular telephonedevice is in the operation, the plurality of household appliances. 21.The household-related apparatus of claim 19, wherein: the at least onecellular telephone device is capable, at least in part, when the atleast one cellular telephone device is in the operation, of programmingthe at least one household appliance to operate in accordance, at leastin part, with pre-set time intervals.
 22. The household-relatedapparatus of claim 19, wherein: the at least one household appliance isalso capable of comprising at least one water temperature-relateddevice.
 23. The household-related apparatus of claim 19, wherein: atleast one additional of the household audio/video devices is capable ofreceiving, at least in part, digital photograph data for display. 24.The household-related apparatus of claim 19, wherein: the at least oneaudio-related stream and/or at least one video-related stream arecapable of comprising at least one multicast stream.
 25. Thehousehold-related apparatus of claim 19, wherein: the at least one otherof the household audio/video devices is capable of being selected, atleast in part, based, at least in part, upon at least one other requestto be received, at least in part, via the at least one cellulartelephone device.
 26. The household-related apparatus of claim 19,wherein: the at least one camera comprises at least one householdsecurity surveillance camera.
 27. A method implemented, at least inpart, using a household-related apparatus, the apparatus being capableof being used, at least in part, in at least one household inassociation, at least in part, with control of household devices, theapparatus being capable, when the apparatus is in operation, ofcommunicating, at least in part, with at least one service provider andat least one cellular telephone device, the household devices beingcapable of comprising household audio and/or video (audio/video) devicesand at least one household appliance, the at least one householdappliance and the household audio/video devices being capable of beingcomprised, at least in part, in the at least one household, the methodcomprising: executing, at least in part, by a processor of thehousehold-related apparatus, instructions stored, at least in part, instorage of the household-related apparatus, the instructions whenexecuted, at least in part, by the processor resulting in thehousehold-related apparatus being capable of performing operationscomprising: receiving, at least in part, at least one audio-relatedstream and/or at least one video-related stream from at least one of thehousehold audio/video devices; transmitting, at least in part, the atleast one audio-related stream and/or at least one video-related streamfor receipt, at least in part, by at least one recipient device that iscapable of being external to the at least one household, the at leastone recipient device being capable of being selected, at least in part,for the receipt, at least in part, of the at least one audio-relatedstream and/or at least one video-related stream based at least in partupon at least one user request to be received, at least in part, via theat least one cellular telephone device; receiving, at least in part,certain data, the certain data being capable of being for receipt, atleast in part, by at least one other of the household audio/videodevices; transmitting, at least in part, the certain data for use, atleast in part, by the at least one other of the household audio/videodevices; wherein: the at least one service provider comprises at leastone telephone service provider; the at least one cellular telephonedevice is capable, when the at least one cellular telephone device is inoperation, of receiving, at least in part, at least one additional userrequest associated, at least in part, with remote control, at least inpart, of the at least one household appliance; the at least onehousehold appliance is capable of comprising: at least one householdlighting-related device; at least one household security-related device;and/or at least one household heating/cooling-related device; the atleast one of the household audio/video devices is capable of beingassociated, at least in part, with at least one camera; the at least oneaudio-related stream and/or the at least one video-related stream are tobe transmitted, at least in part, via the at least one service provider,for the receipt, at least in part, by the at least one recipient device;the certain data are to be received, at least in part, by the at leastone other of the household audio/video devices, via the at least oneservice provider.
 28. The method of claim 27, wherein: the at least onehousehold appliance comprises a plurality of household appliances; andthe at least one cellular telephone device is capable, at least in part,of remotely controlling, at least in part, when the at least onecellular telephone device is in the operation, the plurality ofhousehold appliances.
 29. The method of claim 27, wherein: the at leastone cellular telephone device is capable, at least in part, when the atleast one cellular telephone device is in the operation, of programmingthe at least one household appliance to operate in accordance, at leastin part, with pre-set time intervals.
 30. The method of claim 27,wherein: the at least one household appliance is also capable ofcomprising at least one water temperature-related device.
 31. The methodof claim 27, wherein: at least one additional of the householdaudio/video devices is capable of receiving, at least in part, digitalphotograph data for display.
 32. The method of claim 27, wherein: the atleast one audio-related stream and/or at least one video-related streamare capable of comprising at least one multicast stream.
 33. The methodof claim 27, wherein: the at least one other of the householdaudio/video devices is capable of being selected, at least in part,based, at least in part, upon at least one other request to be received,at least in part, via the at least one cellular telephone device. 34.The method of claim 27, wherein: the at least one camera comprises atleast one household security surveillance camera.
 35. Non-transitorycomputer-readable storage storing instructions that are capable of beingexecuted, at least in part, by a processor of a household-relatedapparatus, the apparatus being capable of being used, at least in part,in at least one household in association, at least in part, with controlof household devices, the apparatus being capable, when the apparatus isin operation, of communicating, at least in part, with at least oneservice provider and at least one cellular telephone device, thehousehold devices being capable of comprising household audio and/orvideo (audio/video) devices and at least one household appliance, the atleast one household appliance and the household audio/video devicesbeing capable of being comprised, at least in part, in the at least onehousehold, the instructions when executed, at least in part, by theprocessor resulting in the household-related apparatus being capable ofperforming operations comprising: receiving, at least in part, at leastone audio-related stream and/or at least one video-related stream fromat least one of the household audio/video devices; transmitting, atleast in part, the at least one audio-related stream and/or at least onevideo-related stream for receipt, at least in part, by at least onerecipient device that is capable of being external to the at least onehousehold, the at least one recipient device being capable of beingselected, at least in part, for the receipt, at least in part, of the atleast one audio-related stream and/or at least one video-related streambased at least in part upon at least one user request to be received, atleast in part, via the at least one cellular telephone device;receiving, at least in part, certain data, the certain data beingcapable of being for receipt, at least in part, by at least one other ofthe household audio/video devices; transmitting, at least in part, thecertain data for use, at least in part, by the at least one other of thehousehold audio/video devices; wherein: the at least one serviceprovider comprises at least one telephone service provider; the at leastone cellular telephone device is capable, when the at least one cellulartelephone device is in operation, of receiving, at least in part, atleast one additional user request associated, at least in part, withremote control, at least in part, of the at least one householdappliance; the at least one household appliance is capable ofcomprising: at least one household lighting-related device; at least onehousehold security-related device; and/or at least one householdheating/cooling-related device; the at least one of the householdaudio/video devices is capable of being associated, at least in part,with at least one camera; the at least one audio-related stream and/orthe at least one video-related stream are to be transmitted, at least inpart, via the at least one service provider, for the receipt, at leastin part, by the at least one recipient device; the certain data are tobe received, at least in part, by the at least one other of thehousehold audio/video devices, via the at least one service provider.36. The storage of claim 35, wherein: the at least one householdappliance comprises a plurality of household appliances; and the atleast one cellular telephone device is capable, at least in part, ofremotely controlling, at least in part, when the at least one cellulartelephone device is in the operation, the plurality of householdappliances.
 37. The storage of claim 35, wherein: the at least onecellular telephone device is capable, at least in part, when the atleast one cellular telephone device is in the operation, of programmingthe at least one household appliance to operate in accordance, at leastin part, with pre-set time intervals.
 38. The storage of claim 35,wherein: the at least one household appliance is also capable ofcomprising at least one water temperature-related device.
 39. Thestorage of claim 35, wherein: at least one additional of the householdaudio/video devices is capable of receiving, at least in part, digitalphotograph data for display.
 40. The storage of claim 35, wherein: theat least one audio-related stream and/or at least one video-relatedstream are capable of comprising at least one multicast stream.
 41. Thestorage of claim 35, wherein: the at least one other of the householdaudio/video devices is capable of being selected, at least in part,based, at least in part, upon at least one other request to be received,at least in part, via the at least one cellular telephone device. 42.The storage of claim 35, wherein: the at least one camera comprises atleast one household security surveillance camera.
 43. Ahousehold-related apparatus capable of being used in one or morehouseholds in association with control of household devices, theapparatus being capable, when the apparatus is in operation, ofcommunicating with at least one service provider and one or morecellular telephone devices, the household devices being capable ofcomprising household audio and/or video (audio/video) devices and one ormore household appliances, the one or more household appliances and thehousehold audio/video devices being capable of being comprised, at leastin part, in the one or more households, the household-related apparatuscomprising: a processor; storage capable of storing, at least in part,instructions that are capable of being executed, at least in part, bythe processor; the instructions when executed, at least in part, by theprocessor resulting in the household-related apparatus being capable ofperforming operations comprising: receiving one or more audio-relatedstreams and/or one or more video-related streams from one or more of thehousehold audio/video devices; transmitting the one or moreaudio-related streams and/or one or more video-related streams forreceipt by one or more recipient devices that are capable of beingexternal to the one or more households, the one or more recipientdevices being capable of being selected for the receipt of the one ormore audio-related streams and/or one or more video-related streamsbased at least in part upon one or more user requests to be received viathe one or more cellular telephone devices; receiving certain data, thecertain data being capable of being for receipt by one or more other ofthe household audio/video devices; transmitting the certain data for useby the one or more other of the household audio/video devices; wherein:the one or more service providers comprise one or more telephone serviceproviders; the one or more cellular telephone devices are capable, whenthe one or more cellular telephone devices are in operation, ofreceiving, one or more additional user requests associated with remotecontrol of the one or more household appliances; the one or morehousehold appliances are capable of comprising: one or more householdlighting-related devices; one or more household security-relateddevices; and/or one or more household heating/cooling-related devices;one or more of the household audio/video devices are capable of beingassociated, at least in part, with one or more cameras; the one or moreaudio-related streams and/or the one or more video-related streams areto be transmitted, at least in part, via the one or more serviceproviders, for the receipt, at least in part, by the one or morerecipient devices; the certain data are to be received by the one ormore other of the household audio/video devices, via the one or moreservice providers.
 44. The household-related apparatus of claim 43,wherein: the one or more household appliances comprise a plurality ofhousehold appliances; and the one or more cellular telephone devices arecapable of remotely controlling, at least in part, when the one or morecellular telephone devices are in the operation, the plurality ofhousehold appliances; the one or more cellular telephone devices arecapable, at least in part, when the one or more cellular telephonedevices are in the operation, of programming the one or more householdappliances to operate in accordance, at least in part, with pre-set timeintervals; the one or more household appliances are also capable ofcomprising one or more water temperature-related device.
 45. Thehousehold-related apparatus of claim 43, wherein: one or more additionalof the household audio/video devices are capable of receiving, at leastin part, digital photograph data for display; the one or moreaudio-related streams and/or the one or more video-related streams arecapable of comprising one or more multicast streams; the one or moreother of the household audio/video devices are capable of being selectedbased, at least in part, upon one or more other requests to be receivedvia the one or more cellular telephone devices; the one or more camerascomprise one or more household security surveillance cameras.